An ex-Amazon courier has avoided a driving ban despite clocking up 21 penalty points from seven separate speeding offences in three months.

Vasile Gheorgie, 38, of Princes Road in Great Yarmouth, admitted all the charges at Norwich Magistrates' Court today.

A six-month ban can be enforced by magistrates after motorists clock up 12 points on a driving licence - if an exceptional hardship plea is not accepted.

Gheorgie said the offences happened while he worked for online giant Amazon as a delivery driver when he had to deliver parcels 'quickly'.

The father-of-one was fined £330 but narrowly avoided a ban after he argued losing his licence would create exceptional hardship for his family.

He is currently on sick leave from work but has to drop off and pick up his wife, who works night shifts at a factory, five days a week.

Prosecuting, Neal Carr said the offences took place between October 14, 2016 and January 21, 2017 mostly in Norwich.

One took place in Darsham, Suffolk, on the A12 when he drove at 46mph in a 40mph area.

Six of the offences were exceeding 30mph, by driving up to 14mph over the speed limit.

They included two incidents on the A140 Mile End Road in Norwich; three on the A1074 Dereham Road in Norwich; and one on the A1067 in Taverham.

Dick Meadows, chairman of the bench, said: 'You did show total disregard with the seven offences of speeding within three months. Nevertheless, we have to deal with the consequences regarding the argument of exceptional hardship.'

He added the bench accepted that if Gheorgie lost his licence, his wife would lose her job and 'the family would probably become homeless'.

'These consequences are sufficiently big for us to find a cause of exceptional hardship.'

The court heard the defendant's wife could not drive, there was no public transport to and from the factory during the hours she worked and the couple had no other family in Britain.

The bench was told they had a 16-year-old son at college in Gorleston who had to be dropped off and picked up by his father as the family could not afford the £12 a week bus fare. Gheorgie's wife's salary pays the rent.

A spokesman for Amazon said the company does not directly employ its own couriers but pays contractors to deliver packages.